Calling foul…

Far be it for me to be the defender of Wal-Mart. I have nothing to give on that front. I am not a goodwill crusader for corporate America.

Having said that, I have to call foul on John Kraft’s ad in The Forum that showed two young girls outside selling cookies in sub-zero temperatures and chastised Wal-Mart for not allowing these girls (Girl Scouts) to sell their cookies inside the store. Selling inside the store is against Wal-Mart’s policy. Kraft was so bothered by Wal-Mart’s lack of concern for these girls’ well-being that he snapped a photo of them and paid for an ad in The Forum to shame the store on its lack of care and compassion.

“Those girls were out there with 20 below wind chill factor. Policies. I understand policies as they may be, but there is such a thing as compassion. There is no justification for what they (Wal-Mart) did, really. I mean, frostbite is a definite possibility.”

Anderson is the Scout Leader for a five member Girl Scout Troop (30475) from Sabin, Minnesota. Her daughters comprise two of the five members. Anderson appreciates Kraft’s mission to press Wal-Mart to allow those selling outside to come inside in inclement weather. Per Anderson, “stores such as Cash Wise, J.C. Penney, Gander Mountain and Lowe’s regularly allow Girls Scouts to set up inside the store or at least in a vestibule.”

Here is the thing that I find unsettling about this situation – the thing that causes me to call foul – why the heck did Anderson let her young daughters sell outdoors on a day like that? Why is Kraft chastising corporate policy instead of parent sensibility? I am fairly sure that the Girl Scout organization would frown on putting girls in harm’s way just to hawk cookies. Shouldn’t a responsible Girl Scout Leader set some parameters for safety in regard to such sales? Shouldn’t a parent have role modeled responsible behavior by telling her children that it was too cold a day to be outside? Why is Wal-Mart responsible for Anderson’s poor choices?

As I said at the outset, far be it for me to be the defender of Wal-Mart, but regular readers know that they can count on me to deliver my expectations for sensible behavior in dangerous weather conditions. It does not matter whether these girls where outside selling in sub-zero conditions or during a tornado warning – there are some days in North Dakota that you must change plans to remain safe. This one is not on Wal-Mart, it is on Anderson.

Day one thousand three hundred and forty-seven of the new forty – obla di obla da

Ms. C

About Ms. C

I teach at NDSU...but I remain a student of life with all the enthusiasm that entails. My favorite saying is, "Sometimes you have to take the leap and build your wings on the way down." In the new forty that is what I am doing...building my wings.

2 Responses to Calling foul…

What chaps my hide is not the ignorant mom, the unfeeling corporate giant,or the polar vortex;my problem is with the little cherubs in paramilitary garb extorting vast sums of money and feeding off the obesity epidemic in America. Hey, if you want to get the limited edition Hello Kitty backpack, go get a job or stand your post in front of a frozen Wal-Mart but don’t whine about it!

That was the first thing I thought when I read this article — it was their choice. They knew they could not go inside to sell as it is WalMart’s policy so they made the choice to sit outside, they were not forced to do it.